Visit Leipzig! Here are 11 good reasons

September 2, 2024, 3:36 pm | Read time: 6 minutes

Leipzig is still a secret among foreign tourists. However, the city, which is located in Saxony, is still underestimated by some German tourists. Here are eleven good reasons to visit Leipzig.

1. The nightlife!

Whether Leipzig is the better Berlin, as is often claimed, remains to be seen. But the fact is that the city, which is barely more than an hour’s train ride from Berlin, has long been regarded as the capital’s cool little sister. Although the spontaneous, not entirely legal parties in particular make the headlines time and again, you don’t have to be an insider to enjoy yourself when you visit Leipzig. In Südvorstadt, for example, one pub follows the next.

Die NaTo in der Südvorstadt ist Kneipe, Kino und Konzertsaal in einem – und eine traditionelle Größe im Leipziger Nachtleben. — The NaTo in Südvorstadt is a pub, cinema and concert hall in one – and a traditional fixture in Leipzig’s nightlife.

2. They are heroes!

The people of Leipzig forced the fall of the system with their Monday demonstrations in 1989. They were even awarded the German National Prize for their efforts. Away from the commemorative days, you can follow in the footsteps of recent history through the heroic city and visit the Nikolai Church and the Museum in the Round Corner.

3. The city attracts the weirdest crowds

Every year at Whitsun, the country’s goths meet for the Wave Gotic Treffen in Leipzig. Dress code: black, white and shrill. In March, for the book fair, manga fans from all over Germany visit Leipzig to flock to the exhibition halls – not so much to read, but rather to mingle with like-minded people in the costume of their fantasy heroes. And then it gets colorful.

So genannte Pet-Player auf dem diesjährigen Wave Gotik Treffen in Leipzig. — So-called pet players at this year’s Wave Gotik Treffen in Leipzig.

4. Oases everywhere!

What Central Park is to New Yorkers, Clara Park is to Leipzigers, or, more precisely, Clara Zetkin Park. Not only is it just as centrally located, it is also relatively large. The best place to head for is Sachsenbrücke because this is where the young people gather. There’s music and street food, and if you don’t have your own beer with you, you might even get one for free – from the nice guys back there on the railings. If the bridge is too busy for you, you are guaranteed to find a quiet place to picnic and relax in the park.

So sieht, die Sachsenbrücke aus, wenn sie sich langsam füllt. An warmen Abenden ist hier oft so viel los, dass man kaum durchkommt. — This is what the Sachsenbrücke looks like when it slowly fills up. On warm evenings, it’s often so busy here that you can hardly get through.

5. Everyone finds their own island here

And sometimes new ones are even created, like here in Lake Störmthal. Vineta is the name of the artificial island, which is intended to commemorate the place that fell victim to open-cast mining at this location and features a replica of the village church. Incidentally, the open-cast mining holes have now been flooded, and the new lakes are gradually being opened to bathers.

Vineta heißt die kleine Insel im Störmthaler See, der dort entstand, wo einst Kohle gefördert wurde. Die Kirche erinnert an das Dorf, das dem Tagebau weichen musste. — Vineta is the name of the small island in Lake Störmthal, which was created where coal was once mined. The church is a reminder of the village that had to make way for open-cast mining.

6. There are even hills!

Well, at least one, the Fockeberg. The hill in Leipzig’s southern suburbs is a classic rubble dump created from building rubble after the end of the Second World War and offers an exceptional view of Leipzig’s city center. Families come to the Fockeberg for picnics. Night owls enjoy a glass of wine or a beer there. The Fockeberg is also the venue for a soapbox race – the “Prix de Tacot.”

Blick vom Fockeberg auf die Innenstadt. — View of the city center from Fockeberg.

7. The sun!

Leipzig recorded more hours of sunshine than other major cities can boast. It has recorded more sun than Munich, Berlin, and Cologne/Bonn. Even Dresden has fewer. And the great thing is that there are numerous places in Leipzig where you can enjoy the sun (see above).

Sonnenanbeter mitten im Stadtzentrum, im Hintergrund die Thomaskirche, in der Johann Sebastian Bach einst wirkte. — Sun worshippers in the middle of the city center, in the background St. Thomas Church, where Johann Sebastian Bach once worked.

8. Where what belongs together grows together

The harbor in Leipzig’s Lindenau district has a very morbid charm and tells a piece of industrial history. The warehouse and storage buildings were used until the 1990s but have since fallen into disrepair. The unique feature: it was not accessible by water, so it hasn’t served as a port until now. A waterway connection to the Karl Heine Canal was only flooded at the beginning of 2017. From the summer, the harbor should now also be accessible by boat. But anyone who wants to experience the dilapidated charm of this forgotten place will have to hurry: A marina is to be built there in the next few years.

Der Lindenauer Hafen bekommt jetzt Anschluss. — The Lindenau harbor is now being connected.

9. Neo Rauch!

He is the most successful visual artist in the country – and lives, of course, in Leipzig. He doesn’t want to leave; why should he? Incidentally, he has his studio in the Baumwollspinnerei in Leipzig. And even if you don’t run into the artist there, it’s always worth taking a walk around the former factory site. The best place to sleep is right there: in the extremely spacious and cool rooms of the Pension Meisterzimmer.

Neo Rauch in der Galerie Eigen+Art neben seinem Gemälde „Speertanz”. Wie sein Atelier befindet sich auch die Galerie auf dem Gelände der früheren Baumwollspinnerei in Leipzig-Plagwitz. — Neo Rauch in the Eigen+Art gallery next to his painting “Speertanz”. Like his studio, the gallery is located on the site of the former cotton mill in Leipzig-Plagwitz.

10. The people of Leipzig are helpful and hospitable

They are predominantly cheerful and rarely moody, and the people of Leipzig are also known for their helpfulness and hospitality. So if Leipzig makes you think of the former “Tatort” detectives Saalfeld and Keppler, who were actually a bit grumpy, you’re mistaken: don’t let that lead you down the wrong path – instead, let yourself be infected by the Leipzigers’ joie de vivre!

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11. More than a thousand years of Leipzig!

Leipzig is mentioned all the time. This is not just in the national press but increasingly in the international press, too. There is talk of a boom, an upswing, of the New Leipzig School and, above all, that Leipzig is actually much cooler than Berlin, the secret party capital, an Eldorado for young people. Incidentally, Leipzig was first mentioned more than 1000 years ago in the chronicles of Bishop Thietmar. This anniversary was celebrated in 2015.

The German original of this article was published in 2017.

This article is a machine translation of the original German version of TRAVELBOOK and has been reviewed for accuracy and quality by a native speaker. For feedback, please contact us at info@petbook.de.